Well-known naturalist drowned

HAMPDEN, Maine — Local naturalist Judy Kellogg Markowsky, 65, who was reported missing last week and whose body was found Friday afternoon in the Penobscot River, had drowned, and the manner of death was suicide, the state medical examiner’s office said Monday.

Markowsky, who was instrumental in the creation of the Maine Audubon Society’s Fields Pond Nature Center in Holden, where she served as director between 1997 and 2009, was a weekly birding columnist for the Bangor Daily News.

Markowsky, who was last heard from on Aug. 2, was found by a recreational boater near Winterport about 3½ miles downstream from her home. Markowsky, who officials said had dementia, left a note behind.

Her family thanked those who helped look for her during last week’s three-day search.

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“It was very heartwarming, and in a lot of ways helped us get through the last few days,” Markowsky’s sister, Sara Kellogg Meade of Amherst, N.H., said Friday night.

A memorial service is scheduled for 2 p.m. Aug. 21 at the Wells Conference Center at the University of Maine. A reception will follow the service.